Spinning-machine for bottles.



I. D. LACROIX.

Patented 001:. 3.1916.

3 SHEETS-SHEET I.

1. u. LACROIX.

SPINNING MACHlNE FOR BOTTLES.

APPLICATION/FILED Nov. 25, 1912.

1,199,908. Patented oet.. 3, 1916.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

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J. D. LACROIX.

SPINNING MACHINE FOR BOTTLES. APPucATmN'HLED Nov. 25, 1912.

Patented Oct. 3,1916.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3 3 w kb f 5 4 W 2 y 5 j 3 M 2 2 e n wv m O w 5 z y v4 5.W Z l :l: 7 F: Z M45 3 f 0/ /1 2 7., M f n rf?. p O .1.. I Z n0 0 9 7 ZZ @..Ma Z 0a. 9. fw ,a W Z 57 ols- Nrrnn sfr-aras rn-fra? JOSEPH D avI'sLACROIX, or BALTIMORE, MARYLAND, i AssiGN'oR To THE WILSON DISTILLINGCOMPANY, or JERSEY CITY, NEW-JERsEY, n ooRroRA'rIoN o'F NEW 'rERsEY.

SPINNING-MACHINE EOR BoTTLEs'.

Patented oet. a, 191e.

Application med November 25, 1912. serial N. 733,408.;A

T0 all whom it may concern.'

Be it known that I, JOSEPH D. LACROIX, a citizen of the United States,residing at Baltimore, county of Baltimore, Vand State of Maryland, haveinvented certain new and useful improvements i-n Spinning-Machines forBottles, fully described and represented in the following specification'and the accompanying drawings, forming a part of the same.

This invention relates tol capping machines, and in particular tomachines adapted to seal caps upon receptacles by spinning.

One object of the invention is to produce a. machine havingan improvedmanually op;

erable feeding and controlling device.

'Another object is to produce a machine 7of simple construction,`capable of Working ef'- iciently and at a high rate of speed. lStillanother object is to produce a machine which may be vadapted for thesealing of caps upon bottles where the cap 'and the bottle combined forma non-refillable receptacle.

Still other objects of invention are included in thev followingdescription and claims.

Referring to the drawings.: Figure 1 is a side elevation ofthe completemachine; Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the same; Fi'g. 3 is a sectionalelevation of the spinner mechanism; Fig. 4 is a sectional plan along theline 4 4 of Figs. 1 and 3'; Fig. 5 is a sectional plan of the spinningmechanism through line 5-5 of Fig. 3;,Fi-g. 6 is 'asectional plan taken"on the line 6,-'.6 of Fig. 3; Fig. 7 is asection taken on thev line7-'7 of Fig. 3; Fig. 8 isa sectionalel'evation taken on line 8*-8 ofFig. ,4; Figs. 9 and 10' are sectional'elevations 'ofthe holder andelevating mechanism, and Fig/. 1-1 is a s'ectional elevation ofthespinning mechanism;

'The particular mechanism herein shown as disclosing 'the' inventioncomprises a machine for the sealing of caps to bottles where thecombined cap andbottle form a non-refillable receptacle. The machineconsists broadly in a 'bottle holder which vmay be elevated by a footlever or pedal, Ia power driven -spinning device in alinement with theholder, and a lever to control both the f engagement of the spinning4'device and botlock nut 18 to secure the parts lirmly to-V gether,this. construction permitting the bottle holder 12 to be adjusted toanydesired height. The solid shaft y17 is splined to the lower bracketl5 as indicated at 19 so that the holder kcannot rotate.

The bottle holder iis moved'upward by a pedal mechanism best. shown inFigs. 1, 9 and 10. To shaft 17 of the' plunger a crosshead 20 isfastenedbyV set screws 21, 21. A pair oflinks 22, 22a connect thecross-head with a cam-arm 23 which is pivoted to the bracket 15 at 24.The pedal 25 is fulcrumed to the base 10 at 26 and at its inner endcarries a rollerV 27 which engages the camearm 23. The fulcrum block 2,6normally floats upon springs 28, 28 (Figs. 1 and 2) and has a slightvertical cushioning movement within the lug`s29, 29 of the base 10. Apair of coactin-g serrated stops 30, 30a are attached to pedal 25 andbase 10v respectively, and when the pedal is depressed, as shown in Fig.2, these stops-engage eachother and the fulcrum- 26l then becomes lockedin a Xed position. Thestops are serrated so that they may engage eachother and lock the fulcrum regardless of the. extent to whichthewfulcrum may be. vertically displaced. The kpedal is kept normallyelevated'by ,a kcompression spring 31, spring plunger 32 and sleeve 33.The plunger 32 is pivoted to thepedal at 34 andthe sleeve the pressureof spring 31, the roller 27 cam-- ming the arm 23 upward which in turncauses the holder plunger to move upward in brackets 14, 15 bringing thebottle and cap into position to be operated upon by the spinningdevices.

The iioating fulcrum 26 will absorb any undue shock that may be causedby a too rapid depression of the pedal, while thel stops 30, 30a willlock the fulcrum in position after the upward movementJ of the holderhas taken place, so that when the bottle is finally positioned to beoperated upon, the holder will form a rigid abutment to resist thepressure of the spinning` device..

The spinning device is adapted to seal hermetically together the cap andbottle by spinning` a sleeve upon them. The method is disclosed in Fig.11 in which the bottle is shown at 36 and the cap at 37. The cap has agroove 37a Awhile the bottle has two similar grooves 36a, 361. Thesleeve or ferrule 38, as shown in Fig. 3, is provided with a flange 39by which it may be set into position upon the cap and may also serve tohold the cap in alinement with the bottle. The sleeve is spun into thegrooves 37a, 36, 367 rmly binding the cap and Vbottle together, as shownin Fig. 11, and during the spinning the sleeve 33 is drawn or ironedout, as indicated in Figs. 3 and 11. method of spinning, together withthe spinning mechanism to be first described, form the subject-matter ofa co-pending application led October 24, 1912, Serial No. 727,492, andis disclosed here only so far as is necessary to illustrate the presentinvention. This spinning mechanism comprises three coperating devices:plungers operating together to center the cap, to hold it in positionupon the bottle, and to clamp the sleeve in position for spinning;mechanism to move the spinning rolls along the sleeve; and mechanism tovary the pressure of the spinning rolls upon the sleeve.

The centering and holding plungers are shown in Figs. 3 and 11.Centrally located in the spinning mechanism is a tube 40, the upper endof which is anchored to a bracket 41 by threaded engagement and a locknut 42; the bracket V41 being bolted to the frame 11. The intermediatepart of the tube 40 contains a spring 43 and a shouldered plunger 44 thelower end of which terminates in a centering head- 45. The lower part oftube 40 is enlarged to form a cylinder within which a second andstronger spring 46 is located and also a second plunger 47, the plunger44 passing freely through the spring 46 and the second plunger 47. Atthe lowest point on the tube 40, at the bottom of the cylindricalenlargement, is a tubular jaw 48. These devices operate as follows: Whenthe bottle and cap are elevated as previously described, the cap 37 ofthe bottle first comes into contact with the centering plunger head 45,which acts to center the cap and bottle as the holder continues itsupward movement, the movement at the same time driving back the plungerhead 45 and compressing the spring 43. Just before the holder reachesits upward limit of motion, the head 45 comes into contact with thelower end of the second plunger 47, whereupon additional pressure is putupon the cap by the compression of spring 46. This position of parts isshown in Fig. 11. At the last instant of the upward movement of theholder, as also shown in the same figure, the tubular jaw 43 comes intocontact with the flange 39 of the sleeve or ferrule 33 and clamps thatpart of the sleeve firmly to the cap.

The spinning rolls are shown at 49, 49 in Figs. 6 and 11, and arecarried by arms 50, 50 pivoted with their respective shafts 51, 51 atequal distances from one another upon a spinner head 52. The head 52 iscarried at the lower end of a rotary sleeve 53 which surrounds theplunger mechanism described above and is concentric with the fixed tube40.- As shown in Fig. 3, the upper end of the sleeve is splined at 54and is slidable through a sleeve 5,5 which is attached to the bracket 41and supports a pulley 56. rllhe pulley rotates the sleeve 53 through afeather 57 engaging the spline 54, the sleeve 55 acting as a bearingtherefor.

By the construction thus described, the splined sleeve 53 and spinnerhead 52 may begiven a continuous rotary motion, while at the same timethey are longitudinally movable.

The pressure of the spinning rolls upon the sleeve to be spun is variedby the mechanism shown in Figs. 5 and 11. As shown in Fig. 5, the shafts51, 51 carrying the spinning` rolls 49, 49 are equipped with arms 53, 53to which are fastened resilient members 59, 59 terminating at theirinner ends in antifriction balls 60, 60. These balls normally contactwith a hollow cone 61 which is slidable longitudinally upon the spinnerhead 52 and spinner sleeve 53. The cone 61 has a groove 62 through whichit is engaged by yoke 63, the yoke being attached to a rack 64 which isslidable in a bracket 65 bolted to the frame and forming a support forthe spinning mechanism.

The spinning mechanism is equipped with an automatic counter to registerthe number of bottles capped by the machine. As shown in Fig. 3, a rod66 is located within the upper part of tube 40 and projects above thetube where it may make contact with the pawl arm 67 of a register 63mounted upon the frame (Figs. 1 and 2). This rod is weighted at 69 andis raised to operate the register by plunger 44 whenever the latter israised in a capping operation, as previously described.

The spinning mechanism 'so far described forms no part of the presentinvention in itself and is further disclosed in thec'o-pendingapplication mentioned above.

It will be noticed that the mechanism must further be provided to rotatethe spinning head; to reciprocate it in a vertical direction; and tocontrol the radial movement and pressure of the spinning rolls.

For the purpose of rotating the spinning head, a suitable prime mover,as an electric motor mounted upon a bracket 7l attached to the frame 11may be used.' This motor by means of a belt 72, idle pulleys 73, 73, maydrive the spinning head through pulley 56 above described.

The spinning head is reciprocated vertically by a rack 74 (Figs. 3 and4) which is fastened to a sleeve 75 surrounding the spinning head sleeve53 and having a sliding bearing in the bracket 65. The sleeve 75 isconiined within shoulders on sleeve 53, so

that any longitudinal movement of the sleeve 75 will carry with it thesleeve 53, at the same time allowing the latter to rotate freely. Asshown in Figs. 1 and 3,the spinning head 52, sleeve 53, sleeve 75 andrack 74 are held normally in their highest position by a counterweight76, connected with them by a chain 77 running on pulleys 78, 78.

As best shown in Fig. 4, bracket 65 carries a shaft 79 that may berotated or moved longitudinally. Upon this shaft a sleeve 80 is looselypositioned, carrying a spur gear 81 lmeshing with rack 74. To the outerend of sleeve 80 is keyed an arm 82 to which is fulcrumed at 83 a lever84 which is pivoted to shaft 79 at 85. When the lever 84 is depressed,the lever and arm 82 rotate with shaft 7 9 about the axis of the latter,at the sametime rotating the sleeve 80 and gear 81, causing the spinninghead to descend.

The radial movement and pressure of the spinning rolls is controlledthrough rack 64 described above. This rack meshes With a gear86 formingpart of a second sleeve 87 mounted loose upon shaft 79. The sleeve 87 isequipped with opposite diagonal slots 88 which are engaged by a key 89forming a part of shaft 7 9. When the lever 84 is moved from right toleft about fulcrum 83 as a center, as viewed in Fig. 4, the longitudinalmovement of shaft 79 Which results causes a rotary movement of sleeve 87and gear 86, whereupon the rack 64 is downwardly moved and the cone 61moves the spinning rolls as described.

It will be noticed that the right and left movements of the lever 84,and its up and down movements are independent of each other, so that theposition of the spinning rolls and the pressure of the rolls may beindependently determined, or may be cordinated in a single movement oflever 84; This permits the sleeves to be subjected simultaneously to aspinning process and to a drawing or ironing out process as well. Inthis Way lthe joining sleeve may be held under an increasing drawingtension during the spinning operation, resulting in an unusually tightand permanent joint.

The invention is disclosed in connection with a mechanism speciallyadapted for the sealing of caps to non-rellable bottles; but it is to beunderstood that the invention is not restrictedv to this particularillustrative mechanism as italso includes all machines in which caps andreceptacles of any description are sealed together. It is obvious alsothat many changes may be made in the details of the mechanism disclosedwithout departing from the spirit of the invention, so that theinvention is not to be limited to the particular structure and specificdetails herein disclosed.

What is claimed is:

1. In combination, a spinning tool, means to revolve the tool about anaXis, mechanism to move the tool longitudinally in relation to the aXis,devices adapted to force the tool toward the axis with a variablepressure, a lever, the said mechanism and said devices being adapted toact upon thetool independently of one another, but each vbeingselectively controlled by said lever.

2, In combination, a resilient spinning tool, means to revolve the toolabout an aXis, mechanism to move the tool longitudinally in relation tothe axis, devices adapted to force the tool toward the aXis, and amanually operable lever controlling jointly or selectively the saidmechanism and the said devices.

3. In combination, a spinning tool, means to revolve the tool about anaxis, mechanism to move the tool longitudinally in relation to the axis,devices adapted to force the tool toward the axis with a variable andresilient pressure, and a manually operable lever controlling ointly orselectively the said mechanism and the said devices.

4. In combination, a holder, a foot lever,

connections between the holder and foot fulcrum in a fixedV positionwhen said holder is in an elevated condition.

. 6, In a bottle capping machine, the shaft In testimony whereof, I havehereunto set 79, sleeve 80 mounted thereon, arm 82 keyed my hand, in the-presence of tWo subscribing 10 to sleeve 80, lever 84: pivoting on arm82 and shaft 79, thev lotted sleeve 87 loosely Witnesses.

mounted on sha t 79 and prevented from v endwise movement, key A89carried by the JOSEPH DAX/IS LACROIX' shaft and engaging the slottedsleeve, gear Witnesses:

81 attached to sleeve 8O and gear 86 attached JULIA B. ROBINSON,

to sleeve S7 substantially as described. M. C. MASSIE.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents` Washington, D. G.

It is hereby certified that in Letters Patent No. 1,199,908, grantedOctober 3, 1916, for an improvement in Spinning-Machines for Bottles, anerror appears requiring correction as follow: In the grant, in theheading and signature to the printed specication the name 4of thepatentee Was erroneously Written and printed as Joseph Davis Lacroix,Whereas said name should have been Written and printed as Joseph DartsLacro; and that the said Letters Patent should be read with thiscorrection therein that the same may conform to the record ofthe caseinthe Patent Ofiice.

Signed and sealed this 19th day of December, A. D., 1916.

[SEAL] R. F. WHITEHEAD,

Acting Commissioner of Patents.

